Provisions of the Right to Education (RTE) Act are being violated in various government educational institutions in the Capital, said a report released by non-government organisation Child Rights and You (CRY) and its alliance partners here on Monday. It noted “several infrastructural gaps in schools”.
The study was conducted in six districts of Delhi and covered 131 schools.
As per the Act, there should be 40 students in a single classroom, but the study notes that 80-120 children were made to sit in a single classroom.
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“The ideal student-teacher ratio is 40:1, but it is not maintained in corporation and government schools because there have been no new appointments since the inception of the Act,” notes the report.
Non-availability of proper outdoor games facilities, teachers being hired on contract basis and unhygienic conditions of toilets were the other major drawbacks noted during the study.
“Outdoor game facilities were not available in 28 per cent schools. In West Delhi, 80 per cent schools did not have the facilities, whereas in East and North-East, half of the sample schools did not have them at all. In South Delhi, 30 per cent schools did not have outdoor game facilities. Also, indoor game facilities were absent in 28 per cent schools. Twenty-four per cent schools did not have a library; 83 per cent in East Delhi and 80 per cent in West Delhi lacked this facility.”
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According to the report, the unhygienic condition of toilets in government schools is one of the major causes behind children dropping out of school. Out of the schools covered in the survey, only 44 per cent had clean toilets.
Denial of admission was another major issue observed during the survey.